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Telework could save Ca. $1.5B annually

Monday - 9/5/2011, 4:51pm EDT

California is one of the states that has had to deal with painful budget cuts over the past few years. It faced a $26.6 billion deficit in 2011 alone. But, the Telework Research Network says the state could save almost $1.5 billion in costs each year if state employees who are eligible teleworked two days a week.

The report says about $800 million of that would come in the form of increased productivity from workers. Another $500 million would come from a decrease in absenteeism and turnovers. The Telework Research Network also says the state would save $170 million in real estate costs.

"Telework offers an inexpensive yet powerful solution to many of the state's most vexing problems such as traffic congestion, earthquake preparedness, budget deficits, air quality, and more," said Kate Lister, president of the Telework Research Network. Lister will present a white paper on the potential benefits of using telework in California during the Work Anywhere Symposium being held Sept. 22 in Sacramento.

According to the event's website, the one-day symposium will take a look at best practices in telework from federal and state governments as well as from industry. The event will also examine human capital implications and technology issues that come with telework.

Sharon Wall and Kevin Kelly from the General Services Administration and Mika Cross from the Department of Agriculture are all scheduled to speak at the event.